Thursday, March 27, 2014

Hi, Bettina here today and I want to show you what some simple details to a sketch really can make it pop. I did use a sketch that I did find on Sketch n' stash . I did pop a diecut doily behind and added a heart, some pearls and a lace behind the image and popped it up. Doesn't Doctor Autry look so cute?? I really love how she turned out.

You can have see more details in my blog. I hope you do have a great day and thank you for looking :)

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Jenn is getting us all ready for some beach time using the image Cali Girl. It's the perfect time of year for this with many people enjoying spring break. I love the bright colors she used and rhinestone accent. Jenn shares her card ingredients with us:Papers are from My Mind's Eye (sentiment was fussy-cut from the paper), ribbon is from Stampin' Up! Gemstone stickers and the little felt beach ball is a sticker from my stash.

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Challenge #5: use stamps that have images that travel such as bikes, trains, planes... you get it!

Our design team starts us off to get your mojo flowing. We can't wait to see what you are going to show us that travels. Remember you need to use a colored stamped image, and follow our challenge rules.

Thanks Everyone for participating! We had a lot of contestants this time around so it made selecting the winners even harder. Please join us tomorrow for another
challenge. What will be the theme? Stop by tomorrow and find out.
Remember the winner is randomly selected for each challenges and they get the ultimate prize which is 3 DIGIs.

We need to be able to see the sketch in your entryBecome a follower/member of our blog if you aren't alreadyDirect link to your project using Inlinkz, not your entire blogRemember you need to link your blog post back to our blogWe reserve the right to delete projects that do not follow the listed rulesIf you have word verification on your blog we may not be able to comment

Winner will receive a personalized badge to proudly display on their blog,

and a 15% off coupon for the store. Plus, they will be our sketch GUEST DESIGNER!

Friday, March 21, 2014

Congrats Cristina! What a lovely card to kick off the Spring season. Your interpretation of the sketch is absolutely amazing. You've just won a personalized badge to proudly display on your blog plus a 15% OFF coupon at A Random Fan.

Thanks Everyone who have played along our first sketch challenge. Please join us on our next sketch challenge.

Thursday, March 20, 2014

Happy Spring Everyone!!! Hope you are enjoying the first day of Spring and are not somewhere where you are freezing your tushes off! I'm a lucky one here in the southwest with some pretty amazing Spring weather. Well today I want to share with you a telescoping card I made using the adorable digital image called Serendipity. This image is perfect for this first day of Spring!

The card I made is called a telescoping card and I followed the directions found on the Splitcoast Stampers website. I of course used completely different dies and images but followed the same techniques outlined in the tutorial. So rather than recreate the wheel I invite you to head over to their website to have a look at the detailed tutorial by Beate Jones.

Thanks for looking and don't forget to join our challenges! You can win some of these adorable images by Sherry Tran. She does some pretty amazing work with her images!!! Check out her Etsy store for more of the cutest stamps around!

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

She did an outstanding job with Monet the Mermaid, I love the layout and her coloring is outstanding. Here is what Arielle had to say:

Hello, Arielle here, back with another little card using Monet the Mermaid! Isn't she fabulous? I love coloring mermaids, maybe because I was asked ALL the time if I was named after the Little Mermaid - LOL!

One thing I like to do after coloring the tail, is to go back in with a fine tipped marker that is slightly darker than the Copics I used, and add little scales. Nothing fancy, just another layer or color and detail, like I did that here. I then took a small paint brush and painted a thin layer of Stickles over the tail. You can kinda see them here - they are the tiny dots at the bottom of the tail. For the rock, after coloring I went back in and added dots of a darker color.

I have really enjoyed guesting for A Random Fan, the images are all just adorable!

Thursday, March 13, 2014

Hi everyone, Melissa here and today I'm going to share with you how to paper piece your image. This is really a very easy technique and it can really add a fun pop to your images.

First I printed out the DIGI image, in the size I wanted to work with.

Next I decided what parts of the image I wanted to paper piece and then decided on patterned papers for those areas. Once I had my papers choices I printed the image on them as well. Keep in mind that smaller patterns are best.

Now the hardest part, (ha ha) cutting out the pieces you want to use. I use a smaller pair of scissors that are very sharp to cut out my pieces. I cut as close to the outside line as possible and that makes fitting the pieces to my original image easy.

Once I have my pieces glued on I use Copic Markers to color the rest and add some additional color to the paper pieces. Easy Peasy!! Now this is all ready to be placed on a card or scrapbook page...

Be sure you check out our Challenge, and our new A Random Sketch challenge!

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Jenn created with the digi image, Hanging On The patterned papers she decided on are great with her little tire swinging girl. The colorful trees and the wood grains coordinate with the tree swing wonderfully. The sentiment is a great fit too. This is will a perfect card for someone going through a rough patch and needing a bit of cheering up. Here is what Jenn had to say:

My name is Jenn and I live in Massachusetts with my husband, my teenage daughter and our 2 cats. I also have a son who I can proudly say just left for Navy Basic Training. :) I have been crafting for over 10 years - I am currently on the Design Teams for Dilly Beans, Just Some Lines, Desert Islands Crafts Challenge, and I run my own ATC challenge blog called Wicked Wednesday. When I'm not crafting I'm usually either reading (which I love), cleaning (which I hate), or cooking (love). Guess which ones I spend more time doing? ;) Thanks for having me as a guest designer at A Random Fan!

Monday, March 10, 2014

AJ was chosen as our MVP. It wasn't easy, but we really thought AJ's card stood out. We really enjoyed everything about her card from the color techniques to the layout. Congrats AJ! You've won 1 free digi and a 15% coupon to our shop.

This week we decided to to make it top four since we are thankful to all that played. We really appreciate your participation. We hope that you've enjoyed the challenges we have created for you.

Please join us this Tuesday for another
challenge. Stop by to check out our designs team sample even if you're not participating in our challenge. Our design team worked really hard to provide you with inspirations for our challenges.

Guidelines
to be followed:We
need to be able to see the sketch (or your interpretation) in your entryBecome
a follower/member of our blog if you aren’t already
Direct link to your project using Inlinkz, not your entire
blog
Remember you need to link your blog post back to our blogWe reserve the right to
delete projects that do not follow the listed rules
If you have word verification on your blog we may not be able to comment

This is for A Random Fan
images onlyWinner
will receive a personalized badge to proudly display on their blog
and a 15% off coupon for the store

Friday, March 7, 2014

Do you love A Random Fan digis, but prefer the touch of rubber stamps? Look no further because I'm super excited to announce that our line has been added to MarkerPOP's collection of rubber stamps. Bonus is that you can get our rubber stamps plus premium markers, paper pads, and a whole lot more all in one place. They carry just about anything and everything you need to fulfill your crafty obsession.
Sometimes it's so hard to contain yourself when you're browsing. Just warning you guys it will take a whole lot of self-control to browse and not make a purchase.

Okay, now to the fun part. Visit MarkerPOP's blog and leave a comment because one lucky winner will receive 2 digis of their choice!

And just to add to today's exciting news, we will be launching a bimonthly sketch challenge starting this Saturday. The winning prize is a 15% off coupon to A Random Fan shop. Please see our challenge rules for details.

Thursday, March 6, 2014

Hi, Jenn Zeeb here and today I get the pleasure as the spotlight designer this week.

I just received a new swing die for my birthday and I have been waiting to play with it. I love how this turned out, now I just have to work on the picture part of things. I decided to paper piece this sweet little dog that was a freebie on The Random Fan Blog last September.

Thanks for hanging out with me today, and don't forget to get your cards in for the sketch challenge.

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

This week our WOWEE Wednesday Guest Designer is Arielle Gordon. Arielle is a very talented lady, and very friendly as well. Her cards are always so fresh and inspiring. This week's card really brings out 'spring fever' for many of us. It's so happy, it's sure to make you smile. Here is what Arielle has to say:

Hi~ I'm Arielle and I have been making cards and blogging about them since 2007. I moved back to my hometown in Alabama after "seeing the world" - LOL! I live with my hubby and 2 kids, ages 4 and 5 1/2. I like to cook, and take my kids to the park, take a LOT of photos and scrap them. Besides design team work, I also manage 2 challenge blogs. I started the colourQ Challenge in 2009 and RetroSketches in 2012 - I have always loved challenges! I love using a variety of images, especially digi stamps - they are so so versatile!

I was really drawn to this image - Arie Walking stamp - she is so fun and springy and just plain adorable! I find curly hair pretty hard to color, and about halfway through this I almost gave up! I started by adding a light brown base and then layering dots of brown color, from dark in the back and above the face to light outward. I finished up by using a fine tip black marker to add more definition and curls.